[Kleftiwallah]

Good evening everyone, 
 well the broad beans are through, peeping their heads above ground.  Just netted them to deny the pidgeons a nice little snack. 

Cheers,  Tony.

[Snowboar]

Nice bit late with mine got some I’m pots but not many still trying to get ground ready they do so much better I find from an autum sowing  no black fly

[Candide]

Got just half a dozen growing in wee pots.  Probably sow a few more in a week.  Then plant out when ready.  I'll put another couple of rows in during spring when there's a bit more clear space,

[Subversive_plot]

It's encouraging to see other folks planting broad  beans in the autumn.  That's really my only choice in terms of weather, it is too hot at other seasons.  This is the first year I've tried to grow broad beans.

I have about 40 to 45 seeds in the ground, in two rows, they are sprouting quite well.  There's a nice tuft of leaves where each seed is coming up.

[New shoot]

We have a bit more leeway here SP.

Autumn sowing gives you an earlier crop and the plants are more robust so do not have so many of the tender leaf tips beloved of aphids.  Some sow January or February, usually in pots to get them going before planting out. Some carry on with later sowings in the spring to extend the season.

Good luck with yours. It will interesting to see if you can pull it off 

[snowdrops]

I’ve  sown a few short rows of The Sutton last week in the poly tunnel. Probably a bit early to be honest but PT growing is still very new to me. I’ve never done well with sowing outdoors in Autumn, I’ve always found the winter frosts finish them off eventually, having said that , I’ve not done them for a few years & those years we’ve not had severe weather so it would be Sod’s law to try again outside & then we have a bad winter .
 
The ones I sowed last year in the PT we’re done in November & grew to enormous heights & cropped well, so I thought I’d try a bit earlier so hopefully they crop earlier & are out ready for the toms to go in, we shall see

[Subversive_plot]

I have heard varying stories regarding how cold is too cold for broad beans.  This website: https://www.growveg.com/guides/how-to-grow-fall-planted-fava-beans/ says hardy down to -10 C (or 14 F).  Does that sound right? or too cold? 

I think if temps were going colder than 20 F (7 C) I'd be putting a tarp over them.  Or will they tolerate colder without problems?

[snowdrops]

I think sometimes here mine died from cold, wet & windy weather over a period of time to be honest. At least they won’t be too wet in my tunnel.

[Nobbie]

Everyone seems to be sowing these very early. I thought they got too leggy and vulnerable to bad weather if you planted them too early? Checked my seed packet and it said November as I remembered. Do need to get them in now though. Never had much luck overwintering them, but nice to see something growing.

[Yorkie]

Got mine in today 

[Bryan and carol]

Last year's late autumn outdoor sowing did very well indeed probably because of the mild winter, so I've sown a double row again this year. Fingers crossed we don't get another beast from the east or equivalent. I read somewhere that providing protection can lead to rot developing, but should we get some hard frosts I'll try to get them covered.

[Subversive_plot]

I'm still looking for suggestions please, how cold is too cold for broad beans, and requires covering up?

The website which suggests hardiness down to -10 °C sounds too optimistic, but I'm thinking I don't need to cover them yet, four nights from now, when it's forecast to dip to -2 °C overnight.

For outdoor plants (my only option), when would you cover them up?  When would you not bother?

FWIW, some of mine are 8 inches tall now, others are still mere sprouts, just peeking above the soil.

[AndyRVTR]

I grew Bunyard Exhibition broad beans last year sowing them on 4th December in pots, I left them in my unheated greenhouse until I planted them out on 22nd February.
I remember we had some really cold temperatures up here down to -4 one night but I ended up with a great crop.

[Subversive_plot]

Thank you Andy.  Was that -4 C, or -4 F?

[bayleaf]

It's hard to generalise SP. I lost autumn showings 3 years running. I find cold winds are more of an issue than temperature but our site is exposed.